Every time I turn the news on or pick up a paper or get on facebook (cause we all know everything posted on facebook is true for sure) I see accounts of Christians around the world who are being mocked, jeered at, tortured, beaten and killed for their faith.  My heart is heavy for them and their families.  I do not and cannot imagine their great sorrow or sacrifice.

I am seeing a trend  that is surprising to me from God's view but not at all from the world's view.  The surprising thing about this trend is that it is as prevalent in the church as out.  But wait, wait, we are to be in the world not of it.  Ummm...epic fail in this area.

I hope by now my few but faithful readers are seeing just how much gospel is in the Old Testament Book of Numbers.

Sin is ruinous.  Israel has been finding this truth out the hard way.  When we last left them in Numbers 14, their cowardly spies who "gave a bad report" of the Promised Land had "died by a plague before the Lord" (v. 37).  So, Israel has just watched the 10 cowards die, while the two faithful spies, Joshua and Caleb, lived to spy another day.

Lesson learned, right?  Trust God.  Obey God.  It's that simple.

Not so fast.  It is that simple, but nothing could be more difficult for hard-hearted sinners than trusting and obeying God.  Perhaps this explains why the very next thing the Israeli mob does is to confess their sin (a good thing) and then go about fixing it their way (a bad thing).

Numbers 14:39-40 tells us the plan concocted by Israel is to now confess their sin and go begin taking the Promised Land by military force.  Only one problem - God has already told them that none of them over the age of twenty will see Canaan.  Instead, they will all die in the wilderness, the 10 cowardly spies being the "down payment," if you will.

God had spoken.

No wonder Moses urged the people not to follow through with their hair-brained attempt at patching things up with God.  "Why then are you transgressing the command [literally the mouth] of the Lord when it will not succeed?  Do not go up, or you will be struck down before your enemies, for the Lord is not among you" (vv. 41-42).

So, what will the people do?  Will they really learn the lesson?  Trust and obey.  God had already spoken.  Now in an overflowing measure of grace He speaks yet again by Moses warning them not to try to take Canaan.  Life or death is again in the balance, it seems.

"But they went up heedlessly . . . then the Amalekites and the Canaanites who lived in that country came down and struck them and beat them down" (vv. 44-45).

No surprises there.  When will they ever learn?  When will we?  

How often do we come somewhat to our senses and realize we have sinned, only to confess and then run ahead in our own strength, leaning on our own wisdom?  We love to treat our lives like a "fixer-upper."  We'll make this thing work one way or another.  We'll try harder.  We'll study more.  We'll log more hours.  We'll turn over new leaves.  We'll go to church twice a week.  We'll take good sermon notes.  We'll even join a small group.  We'll get it right this time, God.  We promise.

Only one thing missing in that equation.

"Who has bewitched you, before whose eyes Jesus was publicly portrayed as crucified?  This is the only thing I want to find out from you: did you receive the Spirit by the works of the Law, or by hearing with faith?  Are you so foolish, having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh?" (Galatians 3:1-3).

Oh God, help us stop and hear Your word with faith.  Help us, Holy Spirit, take You at Your Word, trust You, and walk by faith each day.  May we, like Paul, come to grasp that it is "No longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me.  And the life I now live in the flesh, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me."  Amen.   

God promised to give Israel a good land called Canaan.  Poised at its edge, Moses sent spies into Canaan.  Two spies believed God and wanted Israel to go in and take the land.  Ten spies disbelieved God and gave a cowardly report.

God was angry, saying essentially to Moses, "Stand back boy while I annihilate these whiners and I'll make an even greater nation out of you and your own children" (Numbers 14:11-12).

Now I cannot speak for you, but my initial gut reaction might have been to just stand back and say, "OK God, have at it.  This should be some kind of air show."

"But Moses said to the Lord, 'Then the Egyptians will hear of it, for You brought up this people in Your might from among them, and they will tell the inhabitants of this land.  They have heard that You, O Lord, are in the midst of this people.  For You, O Lord, are seen face to face, and Your cloud stands over them and You go before them, in a pillar of cloud by day and in a pillar of fire by night.  Now if You kill this people as one man, then the nations who have heard Your fame will say, 'It was because the Lord was not able to bring this people into the land that He swore to give them that He has killed them in the wilderness.'  And now please let the power of the Lord be great as You have promised, saying, 'The Lord is slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, forgiving iniquity and transgression, but He will by no means clear the guilty . . .'  Please pardon the iniquity of this people, according to the greatness of Your steadfast love, just as You have forgiven this people from Egypt until now' " (vv. 13-19).

Wow.  What a stunning confession and humble intercession.  Moses is not interested in his name being made famous or great.  He cares far more for God's own Name and reputation.  Moses is essentially begging God not to change!  It's as if he's saying, "O God, please do not change on us now, after You've shown us how great and gracious You are and made all these promises to us.  Please God do not allow Yourself to be mocked by Egypt and other pagan nations.  Fight for Your glory and Your name, O God!  Forgive and keep on forgiving us, just as You have done all along."

Oh, for the Church of today to have such zeal for God's holy Name and fame.  What if this spirit truly consumed a local congregation in America today?  Can we even dream of such a thing, so foreign to us in our pride and complacency?  Salvation, after all, is ultimately "to the praise of His glory" (Eph 1:11-12).

Well, God did pardon Israel's great sin, as Moses requested (v. 20).  But He did not erase the real-world consequences of their rebellion.  God promised that none of the generation of Wilderness Wanderers, except Caleb and Joshua, would see the Promised Land.  They would instead die in the wilderness and their corpses would rot there.  Their children, whom the ten spies claimed would be "prey" in the land of Canaan, would actually go in and take the good land (vv. 20-31).

Of particular note is verse 33: "And your children shall be shepherds in the wilderness forty years and shall suffer for your faithlessness, until the last of your dead bodies lies in the wilderness."

Sin always has consequences, you see.  And, those consequences nearly always involve the suffering of those closest to you.  This is still true.  Few things grieve me more than to see others hurt because of my own sin, and to see the unrepentant sin of those in the church cause immense grief and hurt to often innocent by-standers.

The Gospel tells us Christ has borne the curse of our sin upon Himself on the cross.  By trusting in Jesus' sacrifice, we have forgiveness of sin and right standing with God.  This right standing relies on Christ's own righteousness and thus cannot be diminished or removed (Romans 3-4).  And yet, even as Christians saved by grace through faith, our sin has real-world consequences.  It's definitely one of the means God uses to discipline His children, to allow our sin to impact us and others in this life (thankfully it will not be held against us in the next life, praise Jesus).

Sin hurts.  Always has, always will, until God makes a full end to sin in the New Heaven and Earth.  Until then, let us "put to death the deeds of the body" (Romans 8:13), and "put on the new self" (Colossians 3:10).  Let us not use grace as a license to sin (Rom 6:1).  Rather, let us "walk in a manner worthy of our calling" (Eph 4:1).

The Name of our Lord and Savior is worthy of our fighting against sin in His Spirit and power.  Jesus is worthy of our living for things above and not the things below (Col 3:2).  And when we sin and God allows consequences to bite us, let us thank Him for this kindness of Fatherly affection (Hebrews 12:4-11).

After all, God could rightly kill us instantly for our disbelief and sin.  That is exactly what He did to the 10 cowardly spies (Numbers 14:37).  The fact that we are alive and reading this blog is all of grace in Christ Jesus!

"And all the people of Israel grumbled against Moses and Aaron" (Num 14:2).

When we last left Israel, they were at a decision-point.  Would they listen to the voice of the cowards, or Caleb the Conqueror?  The answer is given rather quickly as we move into Chapter 14 of Numbers.  The people get so depressed over the bad report of the 10 cowardly spies that they decide to choose a leader to take them back into Egyptian slavery.

Sin is insane.  Sin drives us mad and makes us crazy.  When sin is ruling our hearts and minds, we cannot and will not think straight!  We pastors see this repeatedly in the counseling room.  Someone caught in sin is stumbling and bumbling through life making one insane decision after another.  Digging their own grave ever-deeper, the mad sinner refuses to hear the voice of truth, love and reason.  Yet, God is so faithful to send His people the Voice of Truth, even in their sinful madness.

The Voice comes through Joshua and Caleb: "The land which we passed through to spy it is an exceedingly good land; if the Lord delights in us, He will bring us into this land and give it to us, a land that flows with milk and honey" (v. 7-8).

What truth!  What courage!  What faith!  The Lord had shown His delight in these grumbling people called Israel time and time again; after all, He rescued them from slavery, bringing the world's dominant empire to shame in the process!

Truth's Voice continues: "Only do not rebel against the Lord, and do not fear the people of the land, for they are bread for us.  Their protection is removed from them, and the Lord is with us.  Do not fear them" (v. 9).

At this point we expect something like the initial battle scene in the movie Braveheart to transpire.  William Wallace has just ridden in on his war horse and delivered a rousing speech.  The Scottish troops who were determined to tuck tail and run have a change of heart.  They begin to cheer wildly and begin to foam at the mouth ready for war!

But sin and idolatry do not work that way.

"Then all the congregation said to stone them with stones" (v. 10).

No human, no matter how great, can remove the insanity of sin from our hearts.  This is something God must do!

"But the glory of the Lord appeared at the tent of meeting to all the people of Israel" (v. 10).

Glory!  Grace!  Mercy!  The real Hero rides in to save the day and to save us from ourselves and our sinful lunacy!

"And the Lord said to Moses, 'How long will this people despise Me?  And how long will they not believe in Me, despite all the signs I have done among them?'"

Our sin and grumbling is always ultimately about the Lord.  Our fear of man is always ultimately a demonstration of our lack of faith in God.  Our walking by sight and leaning unto our own understanding is always evidence of our sinful tendency to forget all God's wonders and to not take Him at His Word and live by His promises.

And we should all be judged severely for it.  God's speech to Moses goes on: "I will strike them with the pestilence and disinherit them, and I will make of you a nation greater and mightier than they" (v. 12).

Justice.  It's what we deserve.  It's what we've all earned from God.  Should the Lord follow through here, it would be perfectly just and fair and right.  Crazy, insane sinners need to soak in this reality until they feel the weight of their own guilt and shame.  But so often we share the Gospel today in only "positive, encouraging" ways.

But there's nothing to commend in the sin-stained hearts and minds of crazed rebels.  What is positive about ungrateful idolatry?

In our last post, we uncovered some eternal gospel truths out of Numbers Chapter 12.  We come now to Chapter 13, where we read of Moses sending spies into the land of Canaan (The Promised Land).

The first we thing we should note is that God told Moses to send out men for this risky military mission (vv. 1-2).  This will not ring popular in our culture, but this is the clear pattern and design of God.  Men are called and equipped by God to lead out, especially if the mission is dangerous and has potential wide-spread consequences.  We may hate gender roles, but God doesn't.  

These men are so important to the history of Israel and God's dealings with them, that they are all named in verses 3-15.  The future of this people, this nation called Israel, appears to depend largely on how these 12 men carry out their God-given mission.  These men represent their fathers (note how each one's father is also named) and families (tribes) and nation.  Much rides on these 24 shoulders!  The implication for our day and age in America is obvious, isn't it?          

Verse 16 tells us something interesting: "but Hoshea the son of Nun Moses called Joshua."  Hoshea means "salvation" or "deliverance."  Joshua means "Yahweh is salvation."  The Greek form is "Jesus."  Thus, Moses exercises authority over his protege and does something God has been known to do throughout Israel's history - he gives a man a new name, signifying a critical moment in redemption history.  Moses wants these men and these people to know their salvation and deliverance comes ultimately not from any man, but from Yahweh Himself!  

Then Moses gives the men their marching orders (vv. 17-20), and the men carry out their mission perfectly (vv. 21-24).  After 40 days in the bush, prowling and sneaking and spying, the men emerge and report back to Moses and their kinsmen (vv. 25-26).  One can hardly describe the anticipation that must have filled the air in the camp of Israel as these spies open their mouths to describe the land and its inhabitants.

The report starts out matter-of-factly (v. 27).  The land is fertile and produces abundance!  So far, so good.

"Nevertheless, the people who live in the land are strong, and the cities are fortified and very large; and moreover, we saw the descendants of Anak [a giant] there" (v. 28).

Wait a minute!  What just happened?  This positive report took a downward turn in a hurry, didn't it?

Ah, but there is a man among these so-called men.  His name is Caleb of the tribe of Judah.  He begins to counter their cowardly claims, saying, "We will surely overcome" (v. 30).  The cowards keep insisting, however, that conquering the land is not in the realm of possibility (vv. 31-33).  "The people are too strong for us," they shout.

And so now, Israel has a choice, a decision.  Will they listen to the voice of cowards, or the voice of Caleb the Conqueror?  Will they fear man, or God?  Will they trust in the very name given to their leader-to-be, Joshua?  Or, will they trust their own instincts for self-preservation and survival?

The more things change, the more they stay the same.

Are not these same questions ones we must answer daily as Christians and as a Church?        

I've taken on the task of reading through the Bible in the last six months of this year.  Typically I read through the Word each year, but spent the first half of this year doing a somewhat different reading plan.  But decided to now go back and sweep through God's Book in 6 months, which has me currently in the Book of Numbers.

My reading has been so enthralling that I am compelled to share a 4-5 part series from Numbers Chapters 12-16 or so.  This Book often gets a bad wrap (perhaps second only to Leviticus).  But there is a massive amount of gospel in Numbers.  So, buckle up, put your trays and seat backs in the upright and locked position, and prepare for take-off.

After the people murmur against Moses (and ultimately God), whining about their Divinely-provided manna, God sends quail in droves upon the camp of Israel.  But the greed of Israel in gathering the birds angered God and He sent a plague upon them and killed all those who gathered in greed instead of gratitude (Num 11).

The very next Chapter records Moses' own sister and brother (Meriam and Aaron the High Priest) rebuking Moses for marrying a Cushite woman.  But apparently this was not really about a marriage:

"And they said, 'Has the Lord indeed spoken only through Moses?  Has He not spoken through us as well?'  And the Lord heard it" (v. 2).  

Jealousy.  By this time in the journey of Israel with God, there should be no question as to Moses' God-given authority.  He's the "go-between."  Moses represents God to the people and the people to God.  He mediates.  He intercedes.  He receives God's word and then proclaims it exactly as God gave it.  He judges and adjudicates disputes.  In today's parlance, "Moses is da man."

So, please note that we have recorded for us these words: "And the Lord heard it."  God has never taken words against His appointed men lightly.  This carries into the New Testament (1 Tim 5:19) but I digress.  For now we note that God took note.

Then, these words: "Now the man Moses was very humble, more than any man who was on the face of the earth" (v. 3).

Wow!  Miriam's words were not spoken justifiably.  Her words were spoken against the world's most humble man!  So, we as readers know who is in the right and who is in the wrong here.  We've got insider information.

Miriam and Aaron want some power and authority, but we must recall that Moses never asked for this job!  HE WAS CHOSEN FOR IT BY GOD.  So, little wonder that God fights for Moses.  He will not need to defend himself against his jealous family, nor would he, being the world's most humble man.

Long story short, God calls out Moses, Miriam and Aaron, and winds up striking Miriam with leprosy.  And in the process, the Lord holds up Moses as even more than a prophet (vv. 7-8).  God speaks with this man "mouth to mouth."

Aaron begs Moses for mercy and confesses his sin, and then Moses pleads with God for mercy on his power-hungry sister (vv. 12-13).  The narrative makes it seem as if she is not yet repentant, as we have no record of her confession or plea for mercy.  She is stiff-necked and has essentially spit in God's face (v. 14), which is probably why God strikes her with leprosy.  Far too often, we must be brought to the valley of death before we give up our filth.  

Mercifully, God does heal her, but only after she is quarantined outside the camp for 7 days as one unclean.  The whole camp of Israel is forced to remain in place for a week, making them more susceptible to enemy attack, all because of one unrepentant sinner (vv. 15-16).  Sin always hurts and impacts others, even so-called private sins.

Sin, you see, makes us dirty.  It casts us outside the camp (the presence) of Holy God.  It matters not whether anybody hears or sees our sin.  The Lord hears and sees.  But thankfully, the Lord gives mercy through His chosen mediator, servant and prophet.  In this case, that was Moses.  But Moses is dead and gone.  His life and ministry served only to point us to the risen and living Mediator Jesus the Christ.  Moses' mediation and intercessions worked only temporarily to stave off God's wrath, as we shall see in this series of blog entries.  But Jesus' mediation and intercession is forever!  

"For by one offering He has perfected for all time those who are sanctified" (Heb 10:14).      

Bowdoin College in Maine has joined the slowly-but-surely expanding list of institutions of higher learning that now define "freedom" in terms of tyranny and tolerance (so-called).

Christian groups on Bowdoin's campus must now allow anyone to apply for and obtain leadership positions.  Of course, anyone has always been welcome to attend College Christian Groups as they study the Bible together or participate in various community service activities.  But saying that someone who openly violates fundamental beliefs of a group must now be allowed to vie for leadership in that group is just insane.  Read about it here:

http://www.christianpost.com/news/bowdoin-college-says-gays-must-be-allowed-to-join-and-vie-for-leadership-in-christian-groups-on-campus-121540/

My alma mater (which I am now ashamed to claim), Vanderbilt, did this same thing a year or so ago, forcing most Christian groups off-campus.  One wonders if White Supremacist groups (yes they exist on college campuses) must allow dark-skinned people to seek leadership.  Should Christians also then be expected and permitted to seek leadership positions within GLBT groups, or atheist groups on campus?  Should the Baptist Student Union seek out Roman Catholics and Hindus for their top positions?  Should Philosophy clubs be looking for Engineers who care nothing of the realm of higher human ideals to lead them?  Should Soccer Clubs want non-athletes to bring their pep talks?  Why can't I coach the baseball team?  Big deal I've never played baseball.  Why can't a communist chair the board of a free market economy?  Why can't a pedophile teach Kindergarten?

This is absolute moral and philosophical insanity.  

The burning question we all have, though, is why in the name of all things unholy would an atheist or a Hindu or someone openly committed to murder or adultery or same-sex intimacy even want to lead a group of Christians who believe the Bible is the absolute, authoritative and inerrant truth of God?  For that matter, why would I, a Christian, want to seek leadership in the vile Ku Klux Klan or the gentle local Atheists Club?

Interacting with people of all kinds and all persuasions is definitely something every Bible-believing Christian should do.  After all, we are called to be a witness to Christ and His saving and forgiving power.  The Gospel message must go out to everyone, for "it is the power of God unto salvation for everyone who believes" (Rom 1:16).  But forcing groups to allow anyone of any persuasion to apply for leadership takes this to a level no sane person can even mentally assimilate.

So, this is "academic freedom?"  So, this is "tolerance?"  I cannot just cordially disagree with you and engage you in intelligent, respectful dialogue on why I disagree; now I have to allow you to lead my whole enterprise?  Vive la liberte!  

We all need to remember that universities and colleges are training the generations who will run this country for the next fifty years.  Can anyone possibly hold out hope for a better day in America?

I smell the stench of freedom.  Freedom as it is being defined by our nation's leaders, both present and future.

Feel free to post responses . . . just know that if you disagree with me I will force you off this blog and seek to totally silence your opinions.

"I searched for a man among them who would build up the wall and stand in the gap before Me for the land, so that I would not destroy it; but I found no one" (Ezekiel 22:30).

This verse was spoken into my ear on the occasion of my ordination into Gospel ministry by none other than my hero, Dad.  He cited this verse, then urged me to never let it be said in my lifetime that God could not find a man to stand in the gap before Him.  Turns out the same words were spoken to him on the day of his ordination by his Dad.  So, that Divine message has passed through three generations of McWhorter men.  [Since I have no sons, perhaps God will allow me to speak the words to a son-in-law one day?]

Father's Day.  For many in America it is one of the saddest days.  I'm forced to wonder if the day will even hold much significance at all in 25 years.  If pollsters have it right, close to 45% of children are now born to single women.  They will never know their dads at all, most likely.  This is, in my mind, the clearest sign of the utter ruin and downfall of America.  The state of fatherhood (more like fatherlessness) makes me deeply sad.  This trend, if not reversed, will destroy us.   

All week on the Today show, they have featured "Stay-at-Home Dads" who are taking on the role of Mom while Mom goes out to slay the dragons and earn the bread.  And this we celebrate?  Now, don't get me wrong, any man who will not change diapers, vacuum floors and feed toddlers is no man at all.  But seriously, we think a total reversal of parental roles is worth celebrating?  We're in deep confusion and trouble, friends.

Yet, I have the distinct honor to pastor men who are standing in the gap.  I am so proud of them, or more correctly, proud of the Savior whom they love and serve.

I have seen men sacrifice higher paying jobs to be able to spend more time with their wives and children.  The world would scoff at such decisions, but real men don't pander to the world.

I have seen men working insane hours to build their family a home with their own two hands.  Exhausted, these men press on driven by a desire to live out God's primary calling for them to be providers by the sweat of their brows.

I have seen men lose jobs but still find ways to keep food on the table as they search diligently for new employment, all the while continuing to lead their homes spiritually.

I have heard men speaking of their family devotions and worship times.  I have heard them talk about what Book of the Bible they are reading or studying through with their families.

I have seen men grow in real, accountable relationships with other Christian men.

I have seen and experienced personally a group of men growing more and more committed to praying for one another.

I have seen men make very difficult decisions which cost them friends (and sometimes they endure their church being bad-mouthed too, simply because of their decision) because they were convinced the decision was what was best for the safety and spiritual health of their families.

I have seen men give away their daughters in protective purity that honors Christ the Pure One.

I have seen men fight to protect women and children whom they have adopted (either literally or spiritually) as their own, becoming a father to the fatherless.

I have seen men rally to run off wolves that are posing a clear danger to the flock of God here at CBC.

I have seen men fighting harmful addictions or wrestling against sin in the power of God's Spirit and Word.

`rank`ly, I too often feel frustrated that more men are not revived in the church I serve.  But today I want joy and gratitude to replace frustration as I reflect on the real men I get to serve week-in-week-out.  They are growing as a band of brothers who are men of the Word.  I'm happy to bleed, even if just a little, beside them.

Oh God, how I thank you for letting me see real men in action.  What grace You have lavished on me to shepherd such warriors.  Give me strength beyond measure to lead these men and their families well.  Give me an anointing to teach them the Word with the power of Your Holy Spirit.  May Your tribe of men increase here under the Headship of the Good Shepherd, the Lord Jesus.  My heart is full God.  My cup runneth over.  I thank You.  Amen.    

June 6, 1944.  D-Day.  

Thousands of troops hit the beaches of Normandy on this day 70 years ago.  I have been watching special after special on KET and AHC.  World War II has always fascinated me.

As a Marine Officer in the 1990s, we spent much time studying the Pacific Island-hopping campaign that added to the legend that is the US Marine Corps.  But we also studied the many, many mistakes of the D-Day invasion in France.  It was a disaster of an amphibious landing, by any standard.  Army troops were not trained for amphibious assaults, and many of them drowned before ever reaching the shoreline.  The surf was atrocious.  The Navy bombardment failed to take out the concrete bunkers on the cliffs overlooking Normandy.  The tanks never made it ashore, as the flotation devices failed.  The decoys (fake tanks, trucks and troops) placed at Pas de Calais had only faked the Germans out initially.  By the time of the invasion on Omaha Beach, General Rommel had amassed fortifications to deter any assault on that 1,000 yard stretch of sand.  It was a death trap if ever there was one.

So, what enabled the Americans to succeed?  Anyone who has studied that battle and invasion is forced to admit we should have been absolutely cut to shreds.  To be sure, the troops on Omaha nearly were totally destroyed by German machine guns.  But, somehow, they pushed forward, climbing over dead bodies and inch-worming their way towards the cliffs which were raining death down on them.

One of the documentaries I watched showed those now infamous "floating tanks" sinking into the surf, while troops scrambled to climb out of them and jump off to keep from drowning inside the tank.  Many did not make it out of the death traps.  Yet, even after the first tanks sunk, other tanks kept driving off into that choppy ocean, only to sink like those before.  Why?  Because they had been given orders and they knew their tank was desperately needed in the fight raging on the beach.  They had to try, even if it was almost certainly going to kill them.

Courage.  It's a hard thing to define, but fairly easy to spot.  Someone has said courage is "going forward even when you're scared."

That's a pretty good definition, I think.  Everyone at the D-Day invasion was scared.  They went anyway, bolstered by courage and the amazing grace of our God who was so clearly on the beaches of Normandy with us and our Allies that day.

Courage won the day.  The WWII generation is quite possibly the greatest in American history, with the exception of the Revolutionaries of 1775.  Such sacrificial bravery and ingenuity and dogged guts to win are worth us stopping for a moment or two today and remembering with gratitude.

Courage can change the face of the world.

"No man shall be able to stand before you all the days of your life.  As I was with Moses, so I will be with you.  Be strong and of good courage" (Joshua 1:5-6).

God, please renew courage in Your church and in this Nation, to go forward for Your glory even in the face of impossible odds.  For Your sake and glory alone, in Christ the Greatest Man of Courage the world has ever known.  Amen.